Breadcrumbs [Home](/) > [How To Look After Your Brain](/markdownify/node/4544) ![How To Look After Your Brain](https://media.slman.com/O6W31_e6CKEdohiP7TExsxaaHM4=/800x0/smart/https%3A%2F%2Fslman.com%2Fsites%2Fslman%2Ffiles%2Farticles%2F2026%2F09%2Fsl-man-160926-site-assets-brain-health-hero-thumb.jpg) ![How To Look After Your Brain](https://media.slman.com/f_O5oVlkSVjVJM0BqEhzSO6RF-U=/400x0/smart/https%3A%2F%2Fslman.com%2Fsites%2Fslman%2Ffiles%2Farticles%2F2026%2F09%2Fsl-man-160926-site-assets-brain-health-hero-thumb.jpg) Image: Vitor Diniz/Pexels [Health](/health) / 16 September 2026 # How To Look After Your Brain We’re not talking about headaches. This is about how your brain actually functions. From supplements to help you focus to treatments that look at longevity, we asked the experts what we should know about staying sharp. Image: Vitor Diniz/Pexels All products on this page have been selected by our editorial team, however we may make commission on some products. ## What does ‘brain health’ actually mean? **“**We check almost every other system in the body without thinking twice: a cholesterol panel for cardiovascular risk, VO2 max for cardiovascular fitness, HRV for how well we're recovering, a CGM for glucose. The one organ running all of it – the one deciding how well you think, feel, focus and recover – has never had an equivalent. Brain health is that missing measure. It's not a mood or a vibe. It's a set of things you can actually track: how well your nervous system regulates stress, how sharp your memory and reasoning are, how well you sleep and recover.” – Will Dawson, chief medical officer of [Naya Health](https://www.wearenaya.com/) ## Why does it matter? **“**We know that the brain is closely tied to what happens in the gut and to your wider metabolic health. The brain runs on a steady supply of fuel. It is sensitive and responsive to changes in blood sugar, to inflammation, and to the signals coming up from the gut. Looking after these will directly impact brain functioning.” – Dr Rubina Aktar, neuroscientist & co-founder of [Elcella](https://elcella.com/) ## What are the main causes of brain health issues in men? “The stressors we see most in our male clients, on the performance and executive side especially but increasingly on the clinical side too, are rarely one acute event. It's cumulative load: relentless decision-making, chronic sleep deprivation, and a professional culture that still treats burnout as a personal failing rather than a physiological one. Male suicide in the UK isn't a marginal issue. It's the dominant one: men are roughly three times more likely to die by suicide than women. Underneath the individual stressors is something more structural, which is that none of us are especially well designed for the environment we're now asking our brains to run in. Ofcom's most recent [Online Nation report](https://www.ofcom.org.uk/media-use-and-attitudes/online-habits/online-nation) puts UK adults' average time online at over 4.5 hours a day. A nervous system built for occasional, short-lived threats is now running in a state of near-constant low-grade activation.” – Will “Family history is also important. If there is a higher incidence of dementia or neurodegenerative disease within the family, discussing this with a doctor and considering earlier assessment may become increasingly relevant as new diagnostic and treatment options emerge.” – [Dr Oliver Bernath](https://www.drbernath.com/), consultant neurologist & sleep disorder specialist ## How does stress affect the brain? “The neuroscience of what sustained stress does to the brain is well established. Yale neuroscientist Amy Arnsten's landmark 2009 review showed that chronic stress disrupts the signalling pathways that keep the prefrontal cortex – the part of the brain responsible for focus, judgement and emotional regulation – functioning properly. Clinically, that shows up as burnout, disrupted sleep, low mood, anxiety, and a kind of attentional fragmentation that a lot of people now describe to us as feeling like ADHD, whether or not it meets the clinical threshold.” – Will ## What is ‘brain fog’? “Brain fog is not a medical diagnosis. It is a description of that woolly, slow, cannot-quite-focus feeling, which is often multifactorial. The common reasons for brain fog include poor sleep, stress and elevated cortisol, blood sugar that spikes and crashes, hormonal change including appetite-regulating hormones, and low-grade inflammation. The gut is fundamental to many of these aspects. Your gut and brain are in constant conversation with each other like a super-highway connected through the vagus nerve and through the hormones and chemical messengers the gut makes. When your gut is unsettled, or your blood sugar is all over the place, your brain feels it.” – Rubina --- ## SHOP THE EDIT ![Creatine from Form](https://media.slman.com/WXzNDohvsBaXWEiKai3g0tHXPTU=/800x0/smart/https%3A%2F%2Fslman.com%2Fsites%2Fslman%2Ffiles%2Farticles%2F2026%2F09%2Fform-nutrition-creatine-ps2350.png) [#### Creatine](https://www.awin1.com/cread.php?awinmid=22320&awinaffid=69421&platform=dl&ued=https%3A%2F%2Fhealf.com%2Fen-uk%2Fproducts%2Fform-creatine-1%3Fvariant%3D49518718189807%26selling_plan%3D8662221039) ##### Form £26 ![Vitamin B12 100 µg Tablets from Solgar](https://media.slman.com/Lb-GEI8LojgMme4bBbFf35WwdyI=/800x0/smart/https%3A%2F%2Fslman.com%2Fsites%2Fslman%2Ffiles%2Farticles%2F2026%2F09%2Fsolgar-vitamin-b12-ps850.png) [#### Vitamin B12 100 µg Tablets](https://prf.hn/click/camref:1011l4oWo/destination:https%3A%2F%2Fwww.hollandandbarrett.com%2Fshop%2Fproduct%2Fsolgar-vitamin-b12-100-g-100-tablets-6100007075%3F) ##### Solgar £6.80 *(was £8.50)* ![Lion's Mane Plus from Wild Nutrition](https://media.slman.com/TCFBaV84agO4yLMXAL50cTNPHsQ=/800x0/smart/https%3A%2F%2Fslman.com%2Fsites%2Fslman%2Ffiles%2Farticles%2F2026%2F09%2Fwild-nutrition-lions-mane-plus-ps3950.png) [#### Lion's Mane Plus](https://www.awin1.com/cread.php?awinmid=31934&awinaffid=69421&platform=dl&ued=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.wildnutrition.com%2Fproducts%2Flions-mane-plus) ##### Wild Nutrition £39.50 ![Awaken Capsules from Elcella](https://media.slman.com/l8AaiCruYp19oRWJCz46f3Ss2fA=/800x0/smart/https%3A%2F%2Fslman.com%2Fsites%2Fslman%2Ffiles%2Farticles%2F2026%2F09%2Felcella-awaken-3x240-capsules.png) [#### Awaken Capsules](https://prf.hn/click/camref:1011l4oWo/destination:https%3A%2F%2Fwww.hollandandbarrett.com%2Fshop%2Fproduct%2Felcella-awaken-3x240-capsules-6102036555%3F) ##### Elcella £595 ## 4 Ways To Improve & Understand Your Brain Health ## *Breathwork* “The brain needs a wide range of nutrients to function properly, but arguably its most important requirement is oxygen. Despite representing only around 2% of our body weight, the brain accounts for approximately 20% of the body’s cardiac output and oxygen consumption under normal conditions. Maintaining healthy circulation to the brain is therefore incredibly important.” – Oliver “Research has shown that the movement of air through the nose can synchronise electrical activity in areas of the brain including the amygdala and hippocampus – areas heavily involved in emotion and memory. Interestingly, this effect is significantly reduced when people breathe through their mouths. There’s also growing interest in the brain’s glymphatic system – essentially part of the brain’s waste-clearance system – and how physiological rhythms interact with the movement of cerebrospinal fluid. Sleep appears particularly important for this process. I think this is fascinating research, but I wouldn’t yet make the leap to saying that particular breathing exercises can ‘clean the brain’ or prevent cognitive decline. For me, the interesting message is that breathing, sleep, circulation, the autonomic nervous system and brain function aren’t separate systems. They’re constantly interacting.” – [Rob Rea](https://robrea.co.uk/), breathwork practitioner & high-performance coach ## *Diet* “When we talk about protecting long-term brain health, I would focus first on the factors that help preserve healthy blood flow and oxygenation to the brain: controlling high blood pressure, cholesterol and blood sugar; minimising alcohol consumption; remaining physically and mentally active, socialising and, importantly, getting enough sleep. I would look for nutrients that people are more likely to become deficient in and address those where necessary. For example, people following a vegan diet are more likely to be deficient in vitamin B12 and iron unless these are specifically supplemented, so checking levels can be worthwhile.” – Oliver ## *Supplementation* “I would always start by checking for genuine deficiencies rather than assuming that taking more supplements will automatically improve brain function. Depending on diet and individual circumstances, it may be worth checking levels of vitamin B12, iron, folate, iodine and vitamin D, as well as considering omega fatty acids. Creatine is also currently gaining attention for its potential brain health benefits. Most of the evidence for creatine relates to muscle health, although there is some evidence suggesting it may benefit memory performance in older individuals. The evidence for improvements in other areas of cognition is much less compelling. Some of the benefits may be indirect: better muscle health can support greater physical activity, which in turn can help with blood pressure, cholesterol and blood sugar – all important for protecting the brain.” – Oliver “The brand I co-founded has a new supplement centred around GLP-1. Elcella prompts your gut to release its own appetite hormones (GLP-1 and PYY) using specific nutrients. Importantly, GLP-1 receptors are found in the brain too, which is one reason this hormone is now being studied well beyond weight. For men in particular, metabolic health, fat around the middle and inflammation all tend to rise with age, and all of that weighs on how sharp you feel. By helping steady appetite and cravings, and supporting better metabolic and gut health, there is a plausible knock-on for clearer thinking and steadier mood. Many of our customers tell us they feel less sluggish and have better energy throughout the day. This is likely via the release of GLP-1 and maintaining blood glucose levels. The gut brain in action.” – Rubina ## *Testing & Treatment* “At Naya Health, we use NayaScore assessments – cognitive testing, heart rate variability, grip strength, sleep architecture and questionnaires like the PHQ-9 – to turn ‘I think I'm a bit foggy lately’ into something trackable and actionable. Our practice then centres on rTMS (repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation), delivering focused magnetic pulses to the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, which governs mood, focus and decision-making, to strengthen underactive circuits and settle overactive ones via long-term potentiation. It's non-invasive: no anaesthetic, no downtime; patients drive home and often return to work the same day. The average number of sessions in an initial block ranges from five to 20, depending on the condition.” – Will Visit [WeAreNaya.com](https://www.wearenaya.com/), [Elcella.com](https://elcella.com/), [DrBernath.com](https://www.drbernath.com/) & [RobRea.co.uk](https://robrea.co.uk/) ***DISCLAIMER**: Features published by SLMan are not intended to treat, diagnose, cure or prevent any disease. 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